CQC Chief Inspector of Hospitals finds that Airedale NHS Foundation Trust requires improvement

The Chief Inspector of Hospitals has rated Airedale NHS Foundation Trust (NHSFT) as Requires Improvement following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission.

A team of inspectors has found that the trust provided services that were caring, effective and responsive but needed improvement to be safe and well led.

CQC inspected Airedale NHS Foundation Trust from 15-18 March 2016 and undertook two further unannounced inspections on 31 March 2016 and 11 May 2016. Included in this inspection were Airedale General Hospital and Castleberg Hospital, near Settle and the trust’s community services including Coronation Hospital in Ilkley and Skipton Hospital.

Ellen Armistead, Deputy Chief Inspector of Hospitals at CQC said:

“We were impressed with the community-based collaborative care teams which were an outstanding example of multidisciplinary team working. The teams worked across acute and community services and in collaboration with other agencies to provide a responsive service for patients 24 hours a day, seven days a week providing a valued service help people to remain in their own homes and avoid unnecessary time in hospital.

“Inspectors found that nurse staffing levels in many clinical areas were regularly below the planned number. This was a particular concern in medical care, surgery, children’s services and in critical care.

“A new emergency department had been opened to meet the increase in patient numbers and new models of working, but there were not enough doctors to meet national guidance and there were too few specialist consultants in critical care.

Since our last inspection of Airedale NHS Foundation Trust in 2013, we have found deterioration in the quality of some services – particularly in critical care and medicine. While staff reported feeling proud to work at Airedale, some felt there was a less open and positive culture. Although the executive team had taken steps to address some of the issues raised by staff regarding support from managers and confidence to raise concerns, there remained concerns particularly in the critical care, medicine and surgery services.

Following this inspection, the trust has told us it is taking action to improve its services, and our inspectors will return to Airedale in due course to check that the improvements that we require have been made.”

Inspectors had concerns about the reporting and management of incidents, particularly within the critical care department. Although the critical care unit used telemetry equipment to monitor the heart rhythm of patients, staff were not always available to monitor the data and respond in a timely manner.

In contrast, in community services, the inspectors saw a culture of continual service improvement and innovation. There were several examples of enhanced integration between health and social care within adults’ services.

The inspection has identified a number of areas for improvement that include:

• The trust must ensure that the remote telemetry monitoring of patients is safe and effective.
• The trust must review the governance arrangements and identification and management of risks within critical care to ensure that arrangements for assessing, monitoring and improving the quality and safety of the service are effective.
• The trust must improve engagement with staff and respond appropriately to concerns raised by staff.
• The trust must ensure the safe storage and administrations of medicines including the management of patient group directives and medicines reconciliation.
• The trust must ensure records are stored and completed in line with professional standards, including an individualised care plan.
• The trust must ensure the five steps for safer surgery including the World Health Organisation (WHO) safety checklist is consistently applied and practice audited.
• A multi-disciplinary clinical ward rounds within Intensive Care must take place every day to share information and carry out timely interventions.

The report also identifies a number of areas of outstanding practice including:

• Telemedicine services provide remote video consultations around the clock between Airedale staff and patients in their own homes, care homes and in prisons. Clinical staff in the hub received calls from staff in care homes and could speak to residents directly whilst viewing them on the screen. The community-based collaborative care teams worked across acute and community services and with other agencies to provide a responsive service for patients seven days a week.
• Within end of life care, there were innovative ways to ensure care was patient centred; for example when patients with additional needs were admitted at the end of life, specialist staff were alerted and could respond in a timely way.

Ends

For further information please contact CQC Regional Communications Officer Kerri James by email kerri.james@cqc.org.uk or by phone on 07464 92 9966.

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